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The humour of Dostoievsky is the humour of a barloafer who ties a kettle to a dog's tail.

W. Somerset Maugham

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W. Somerset Maugham
Age: 90 †
Born: 1874
Born: January 1
Died: 1965
Died: January 1
Army Scout
Literary Critic
Novelist
Physician Writer
Playwright
Prosaist
Screenwriter
Writer
Paris
France
W. Somerset Maugham
Somerset Maugham
Ties
Dog
Kettle
Kettles
Tail
Tails
Humour

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Failure make people bitter and cruel. Success improves the character of the man.
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The passing moment is all we can be sure of it is only common sense to extract its utmost value from it.
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The world is quickly bored by the recital of misfortune, and willing avoids the sight of distress.
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Comedy appeals to the collective mind of the audience and this grows fatigued while farce appeals to a more robust organ, their collective belly.
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Love is not always blind and there are few things that cause greater wretchedness than to love with all your heart someone who you know is unworthy of love.
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It's no use crying over spilt milk, because all of the forces of the universe were bent on spilling it.
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It is good to be on your guard against an Englishman who speaks French perfectly he is very likely to be a card-sharper or an attache in the diplomatic service.
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Let us develop the resources of our land, call forth its powers, build up its institutions, promote all its great interests, and see whether we also, in our day and generation, may not perform something worthy to be remembered.
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The prestige you acquire by being able to tell your friends that you know famous men proves only that you are yourself of small account.
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It has been said that metaphysics is the finding of bad reasons for what we believe upon instinct.
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You know, of course, that the Tasmanians, who never committed adultery, are now extinct.
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There are few things so pleasant as a picnic eaten in perfect comfort.
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It is not wealth one asks for, but just enough to preserve one's dignity, to work unhampered, to be generous, frank and independent.
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You learn more quickly under the guidance of experienced teachers. You waste a lot of time going down blind alleys if you have no one to lead you.
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Genius is talent provided with ideals.
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It is not true that suffering ennobles the character happiness does that sometimes, but suffering for the most part, makes men petty and vindictive.
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No affectation of peculiarity can conceal a commonplace mind.
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It is well known that Beauty does not look with a good grace on the timid advances of Humour.
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I would sooner read a time-table or a catalogue than nothing at all. They are much more entertaining than half the novels that are written.
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We Americans... like change. It is at once our weakness and our strength.
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